When shopping online during the holiday season—or any time of year—always be wary of deals that seem too good to be true.

Do your part to avoid becoming a scammer’s next victim.

Every year, thousands of people become victims of holiday scams. Scammers can rob you of hard-earned money, personal information, and, at the very least, a festive mood.

The two most prevalent of these holiday scams are non-delivery and non-payment crimes. In a non-delivery scam, a buyer pays for goods or services they find online, but those items are never received. Conversely, a non-payment scam involves goods or services being shipped, but the seller is never paid.

According to the Internet Crime Complaint Center’s (IC3) 2021 report, non-payment or non-delivery scams cost people more than $337 million. Credit card fraud accounted for another $173 million in losses.

Similar scams to beware of this time of year are auction fraud, where a product is misrepresented on an auction site, and gift card fraud, when a seller asks you to pay with a pre-paid card.

Tips to Avoid Holiday Scams

Whether you’re the buyer or the seller, there are a number of ways you can protect yourself—and your wallet.

Practice good cybersecurity hygiene. 

• Don’t click any suspicious links or attachments in emails, on websites, or on social media. Phishing scams and similar crimes get you to click on links and give up personal information like your name, password, and bank account number. In some cases, you may unknowingly download malware to your device.
• Be especially wary if a company asks you to update your password or account information. Look up the company’s phone number on your own and call the company.

Know who you’re buying from or selling to.

• Check each website’s URL to make sure it’s legitimate and secure. A site you’re buying from should have https in the web address. If it doesn’t, don’t enter your information on that site.
• If you’re purchasing from a company for the first time, do your research and check reviews.
• Verify the legitimacy of a buyer or seller before moving forward with a purchase. If you’re using an online marketplace or auction website, check their feedback rating. Be wary of buyers and sellers with mostly unfavorable feedback ratings or no ratings at all.
• Avoid sellers who act as authorized dealers or factory representatives of popular items in countries where there would be no such deals.
• Be wary of sellers who post an auction or advertisement as if they reside in the U.S., then respond to questions by stating they are out of the country on business, family emergency, or similar reasons.
• Avoid buyers who request their purchase be shipped using a certain method to avoid customs or taxes inside another country.

Be careful how you pay.

• Never wire money directly to a seller.
• Avoid paying for items with pre-paid gift cards. In these scams, a seller will ask you to send them a gift card number and PIN. Instead of using that gift card for your payment, the scammer will steal the funds, and you’ll never receive your item.
• Use a credit card when shopping online and check your statement regularly. If you see a suspicious transaction, contact your credit card company to dispute the charge.

Monitor the shipping process.

• Always get tracking numbers for items you buy online, so you can make sure they have been shipped and can follow the delivery process.
• Be suspect of any credit card purchases where the address of the cardholder does not match the shipping address when you are selling. Always receive the cardholder’s authorization before shipping any products.

If You’ve Been Scammed

• Call your credit card company or your bank. Dispute any suspicious charges.
• Contact local law enforcement.
• Report the scam to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at ic3.gov.

The winter holidays are going to be a lot brighter for a lot of people, thanks to Country Bank’s annual Season of Difference campaign, during which the bank has pledged 28 days of making a difference in the communities they serve.

The bank’s team members (aka, Difference Makers) will deliver $80,000 in donations to local food pantries, as well as $5,000 each to the Friends of the Homeless, Salvation Army and the USO.

The campaign kick-off is on Saturday, November 26—Small Business Saturday—with Difference Makers purchasing gifts cards from local businesses and distributing them throughout their banking centers on Tuesday, November 29.

In addition, the bank’s team members will be supporting holiday sponsorships and events, volunteering at nonprofits, providing gifts for 300 seniors in nursing homes, 400 gifts for children, and 300 gifts to homeless shelters, ringing the bell for the Salvation Army, and more.

“As a community partner, we care deeply about our communities, and we want to make a meaningful difference where it is most needed this holiday season,” said Paul Scully, President, and CEO of Country Bank. “As we reflect on the past year with gratitude for the bank’s strength and ability to support so many in need, we are also humbled to witness so many great acts of kindness and support throughout our communities from the people and businesses who make this region the remarkable place it is to live and work.”

To find out what the bank is doing each day of the campaign, follow the bank’s social channels or visit www.countrybank.com/seasonofdifference.

Country Bank is excited to announce that they have partnered with the Ware Police Department to host a Stuff the Cruiser toy drive. On December 3^rd, Blair Robidoux, Retail Banking Officer at Country Bank and Shawn Crevier, Chief of Police will collect donations of new, unused and unwrapped toys at Country Bank’s West Street Banking Center located at 155 West Street in Ware. The Ware Police Department will distribute these toys to local children throughout the community.  This is an excellent partnership with its local police department that will truly make a difference for many children in the community.

“The Ware Police Department is excited to partner with Country Bank for a “Stuff the Cruiser” event.  The Ware Police Department is always willing to help those in need, especially during the Holiday season. Please join us on what we expect to be an incredible day”, stated Shawn Crevier, Chief of Police in Ware.

To learn more, please visit our Stuff the Cruiser Facebook event.

The FTC and Country Bank joins the country in honoring veteran entrepreneurs and their families this National Veterans Small Business Week. Unfortunately, scammers are ready to take your hard-earned profits and steal your sensitive business data. So, this week, take time to talk to your employees about how scams happen.

For example, scammers send fake invoices for products no one ordered and hope that someone pays them. They try to trick businesses into paying for things that are free from the government, like occupational safety posters. Or they might call offering a spot in a non-existent local business directory, but it’s a scam. And utilities impersonators call businesses pretending to be the gas, electric, or water company and threatening to cut service due to unpaid bills. But that’s a scammer calling. One way to tell? They ask for payment with wire transfer, gift card, or cryptocurrency, which are ways scammers tell you to pay. And if you pay, you’ll lose your money to the scam.

Cyber scammers might be looking to trick you and your employees with phishing emails or calls that seem to come from a business you know. These business impersonators want sensitive information like passwords or bank information.

A trained workforce is your best defense.

• Encourage your staff to talk with their coworkers if they spot a scam. Scammers often target multiple people in an organization.
• Create a culture of security. Train employees not to share passwords or sensitive information, check invoices closely, and avoid clicking on unexpected email or text message links.
• Share information with your staff. Order free copies of Scams and Your Small Business (also available in Spanish) and Cybersecurity for Small Business. Then share them with your staff. Watch and share these videos.

Learn more at ftc.gov/SmallBusiness. Report any problems at ReportFraud.ftc.gov

The FTC reports:

Scammers are calling people and using the names of two companies everyone knows, Apple and Amazon, to rip people off. Here’s what you need to know about these calls.

In one version of the scam, you get a call and a recorded message that says it’s Amazon. The message says there’s something wrong with your account. It could be a suspicious purchase, a lost package, or an order they can’t fulfill.

In another twist on the scam, you get a recorded message that says there’s been suspicious activity in your Apple iCloud account. In fact, they say your account may have been breached.

In both scenarios, the scammers say you can conveniently press 1 to speak with someone (how nice of them!). Or they give you a phone number to call. Don’t do either. It’s a scam. They’re trying to steal your personal information, like your account password or your credit card number.

If you get an unexpected call or message about a problem with any of your accounts, hang up.

• Do not press 1 to speak with customer support
• Do not call a phone number they gave you
• Do not give out your personal information

If you think there may actually be a problem with one of your accounts, contact the company using a phone number or website you know is real.